Hello. My name is Keven Arrowsmith. I am the new managing editor of the Integrated Crop Management newsletter.

Keven Arrowsmith

I grew up in Orient, located 12 miles north of Creston, in southwest Iowa. Orient is the birthplace of Henry A. Wallace, who developed the first commercially viable strain of hybrid corn, and served as secretary of agriculture, vice president, and secretary of commerce during Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration.

My experience in agriculture began at a young age. I remember taking several trips each year to visit my grandfather's farm in northwest Iowa. His farm remains in our family and I continue to enjoy visiting it. During high school, I participated in my school's Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapter. FFA provided an opportunity for me to participate in livestock judging, soil judging, to work on a fruit and vegetable production project, and to learn about farming practices in Iowa.

I earned a B.S. in radio-television broadcasting from the University of Northern Iowa, and an M.S. in journalism and mass communication from Iowa State University. I began my professional career in radio news, working at radio stations in Iowa and Missouri.

For the past three years, I have been an information specialist for the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), assisting with promotion of Just Eliminate Lies (JEL), Iowa's youth-led tobacco control program. Before joining IDPH, I worked as an information specialist for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources' Information and Education Bureau, promoting Iowa's state parks and preserves. I also had the opportunity to teach courses in public relations and advertising for the Greenlee School of Journalism at Iowa State University and Buena Vista University's Fort Dodge Center.

I look forward to working on the ICM newsletter and with everyone at Iowa State University.